Bills bounces back in SOGC qualifying

Brad Bills put his tee in the ground, placed his golf ball on it and stepped back, waiting.

By TIM TROWER

Brad Bills put his tee in the ground, placed his golf ball on it and stepped back, waiting.

It was the first hole of qualifying for the Southern Oregon Golf Championships Tuesday at Rogue Valley Country Club, and Bills had taken his stance "… at the wrong set of tee markers.

He was at the blue tees when he should have been at the golds.

"I expected someone to say something," he said. "No one said anything. I was just playing."

Bills and two others created a buzz over the weekend when they were disqualified from the city championships at Centennial Golf Club for hitting from the wrong tees in the first round.

In the ensuing days, he had taken what he calls "pretty continual" ribbing.

Hence his prank Tuesday.

There was no carryover from the weekend faux pas, he said, and it showed in his play. He shot a 72, the best round posted in the men's junior-senior division.

Local men qualified on Tuesday in the 83rd annual event. Women and out-of-town men qualify today, with match play starting on Thursday and ending with championships in each division on Monday.

In a long history of tournament play, Bills was DQ'd for the first time.

"It was really weird," he said. "I felt like a bad boy, a bad child. But you know, the rules are what they are and they're that way for a reason, and that's OK."

With his qualifying round Tuesday, Bills would be in line for medalist honors in the division, but his score was adjusted, taking him out of the running.

Tournament rules stipulate that no player can take more than a "7" on a hole, thereby speeding up play. It further states that players with adjusted scores are not eligible to be medalist.

Bills originally posted an "8" on the par-5 12th after he hit his tee shot out of bounds, believing that if he didn't adjust his score, it would be considered for medalist.

After conferring, tournament officials — some of whom agreed there was ambiguity in the wording of the rule — adjusted it to a "7" a few hours after his round.

Todd Neilson was next in the junior-seniors with a 73.

In other divisions, men's senior player Glen Clark shot the round of the day, 67. He birdied four holes on the front nine and four of the last five. His score was stunted only by a bogey at No. 11 and a double bogey at No. 13.

Steve Wood was second in the seniors with a 70.

In the men's regular division, Mike Barry — who was in the group that was DQ'd in the city tourney — prequalified on Sunday with a 71. That score was matched Tuesday by Richard Owens. Alex Hobson, Daniel Schuler and Jimmy White followed with 73s.

In the super seniors, Bob Maentz leads the way with a 73, followed by Bob Harrell with a 76.

Bills got off to a good start, playing the front nine in 3 under par and remaining there until the fateful 12th, when he hit a hybrid out of bounds on the right.

"I'm not sure exactly what I did," he said. "Then I didn't play all that great. It kind of took the momentum away."

Clark, meanwhile, continued what has been outstanding play of late. He captured his second straight city title on Sunday.

"I'm just a streaky player, honestly I am," he said. "When I feel confidence with my putter, the rest of my game seems to come around with it. I can hit a few (poor) shots and still feel I can get away with it. That's where my game is."

He nearly followed his bogey at No. 11 with one at the 12th, but a 30-foot putt with 21/2; feet of break found the cup for par.

"I was so mad at myself," he said, "because to be in the shape I was in, trying to be cautious off the tee, and I just hit a terrible third shot."

He proceeded to double-bogey the par-3 13th with a suspect tee shot and chip.

About then, Harrell happened along and asked if he needed a caddie.

"I said, 'Yeah, that'd be great right now,'" said Clark. "Then I got it going."